France’s newly-elected Socialist government has reversed an unpopular decision by its predecessor to recognise criminology as a stand-alone discipline.
In March, the former centre-right government announced that it planned to establish a dedicated section within the National University Council so that funding for teaching and research would be available for criminology as a recognised discipline. This followed a 2008 report by criminologist Alain Bauer, who called for a greater strategic vision for the field.
The decision was fiercely criticised by several groups, which argued that criminology spans many other disciplines. Even the French Criminology Association objected to how the field was defined and warned about the inclusion of military science in the National University Council section.
The decision to axe the section was published in the government’s Official Journal on 21 August.